Where does “handmade” come from?
Handmade comes from Middle English hond combined with made, derived from Old English hand, from Middle French -ie and Latin -ium suffixes ultimately tracing to Proto-Indo-European ḱwṓ and mag-.
handmade (English): Manufactured by hand; An art or craft object made...
Definitions
- Manufactured by hand; An art or craft object made...
Ancestry of “handmade”, step by step
handmade traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English made
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | made | A grub or maggot; simple past tense and past... |
| 2 | Middle English | made | Alternative form of madde; Alternative form of... |
| 3 | Old English | macode | — |
| 4 | Old English | macian | to make |
| 5 | Emilian | mâcia | spot, stain |
| 6 | Latin | Macula | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | smh₁-tleh₂ | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | smeh₁- | smear, rub |
via English Hand
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Hand | The part of the forelimb below the forearm or wrist in a human, and the corresponding part in many other animals |
| 2 | Middle English | hond | hand; Alternative form of hound |
| 3 | Old English | hand | A hand |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | handu | hand |
| 5 | Swedish | hand | A hand; A hand; the set of cards held by a player |
| 6 | Old Swedish | hand | A hand; A direction; A behalf |
| 7 | Old Norse | hǫnd | hand |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | handuz | hand |